The inventive concept relates generally to memory technologies. More particularly, certain embodiments of the inventive concept relate to nonvolatile memory devices, memory systems comprising nonvolatile memory devices, and methods of operating nonvolatile memory devices.
Nonvolatile memory devices such as flash memories are used to store information in a wide variety of electronic devices and systems. As examples, nonvolatile memories can be found in many portable electronic devices, such as mobile phones, digital cameras, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and portable computers, to name but a few.
There is a general demand for nonvolatile memory devices having reduced size and increased operating speed. However, these desired improvements often come with tradeoffs. For instance, device miniaturization often decreases lifespan and increases the likelihood of errors. Moreover, although an error correction code (ECC) circuit may be used to correct error bits, the number of error bits that may be corrected by an ECC circuit is limited. Accordingly, there is a general need for new approaches to address these and other shortcomings of conventional nonvolatile memory devices.